Biographie

The author of over a hundred international scientific publications, Nicolas Barbier has been contributing to numerous research programmes in Africa, the Amazon and New Caledonia for more than twenty years. His research has, in particular, helped to advance the use of drones, LiDAR and satellite observation for monitoring biodiversity and the structure and functioning of forest ecosystems.

Within One Forest Vision (OFVi), he contributes to the Science, Capacity Building and Co-construction pillars. He is involved in the development of long-term forest observatories, the harmonisation of data and methods across major tropical forest basins, and the training of new generations of researchers and engineers through international collaborations and institutional partnerships.

Deeply involved in coordinating scientific networks, he currently chairs the Scientific and Academic Council of the Congo Basin Forest Partnership (CBFP), where he works to bring together major regional and international initiatives in research, forest monitoring and decision support. At the IRD, he co-leads the Forests and Wetlands Thematic Group, which brings together researchers and partners working on the conservation, restoration and sustainable management of forest ecosystems.

He is also involved in organising the forthcoming conference of the Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation (ATBC) in Gabon, thereby helping to raise the profile of African research and strengthen scientific exchanges between the three major tropical forest basins. Through all these activities, Nicolas Barbier works to bridge the gap between cutting-edge research, forest monitoring, capacity-building and international cooperation in the service of tropical forest conservation.

Scientific publications 

https://cv.hal.science/nicolas-barbier 

Out in the field with Nicolas Barbier 

In this video clip from Les Explorateurs du Vivant Nicolas Barbier explains how new technologies are revolutionising the study of tropical forests. Using drones and 3D scanners, researchers are monitoring foliage renewal, flowering and fruiting cycles, and measuring biomass and carbon storage on a tree-by-tree basis. These highly accurate observations contribute to a better understanding of how the forests of the Congo Basin function and provide essential data for their sustainable management. Credits: Direction, footage and editing: Flore Onissah • Music: Awful – Josh Pan.

During a field trip to the Ipassa-Makokou Research Station, in the heart of Ivindo National Park (Gabon), Nicolas Barbier takes us out into the field to discover how new technologies are transforming the study of tropical forests. Using drones and 3D scanners, he explains how researchers monitor forest health, measure the carbon stored by trees and generate essential knowledge for the conservation and sustainable management of the Congo Basin’s ecosystems as part of One Forest Vision. Credits: Direction, footage and editing: One Forest Vision – Jules Regombi